Argentine Antarctic Program

Argentina was one of the twelve original signatories of the Antarctic Treaty which was signed on December 1, 1959, and came in force on 21 June 1961.

Argentina's scientific activities started at the beginning of the twentieth century when an Argentine named José María Sobral joined the Swedish South Polar Expedition (1901–1904) commanded by Otto Nordenskjold, which wintered two years in Antarctica.

The Instituto Antartico Argentino (IAA) was created under the Decree Nº 7338 on April 17, 1951, and is the first organization in the world to be exclusively devoted to Antarctic research.

The scientific priorities were set according to the National Antarctic Policy to investigate, understand, and preserve natural resources, to protect the environment, and to maintain the historical monuments.

Air operations from South America and within Antarctica is provided by the Argentine Air Force through several C-130 Hercules planes, a small DHC-6 Twin Otter plane year round based on Marambio Station, and Bell 212 helicopters deployed in Marambio Station during the summer.